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Portable, low-field magnetic resonance imaging for evaluation of Alzheimer's disease
Sorby-Adams AJ, Guo J, Laso P, Kirsch JE, Zabinska J, Garcia Guarniz AL, Schaefer PW, Payabvash S et al.. Nature communications, 2024-12-02
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Portable, low-field magnetic resonance imaging (LF-MRI) of the brain may facilitate point-of-care assessment of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) in settings where conventional MRI cannot. However, image quality is limited by a lower signal-to-noise ratio. Here, we optimize LF-MRI acquisition and develop a freely available machine learning pipeline to quantify brain morphometry and white matter hyperintensities (WMH). We validate the pipeline and apply it to outpatients presenting with mild cognitive impairment or dementia due to AD. We find hippocampal volumes from ≤ 3 mm isotropic LF-MRI scans have agreement with conventional MRI and are more accurate than anisotropic counterparts. We also show WMH volume has agreement between manual segmentation and the automated pipeline. The increased availability and reduced cost of LF-MRI, in combination with our machine learning pipeline, has the potential to increase access to neuroimaging for dementia.
Key findings
- Here, we optimize LF-MRI acquisition and develop a freely available machine learning pipeline to quantify brain morphometry and white matter hyperintensities (WMH).
- We validate the pipeline and apply it to outpatients presenting with mild cognitive impairment or dementia due to AD.
- We find hippocampal volumes from ≤ 3 mm isotropic LF-MRI scans have agreement with conventional MRI and are more accurate than anisotropic counterparts.
- We also show WMH volume has agreement between manual segmentation and the automated pipeline.
- The increased availability and reduced cost of LF-MRI, in combination with our machine learning pipeline, has the potential to increase access to neuroimaging for dementia.
Why it matters
This study optimized portable, low-field MRI acquisition and developed a machine learning pipeline to quantify brain morphometry and white matter hyperintensities in patients with mild cognitive impairment or dementia due to Alzheimer's disease. Hippocampal volumes from these scans agreed with conventional MRI, and the authors suggest this could increase access to neuroimaging for dementia.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 55/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Nature communications) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Nature Communications: journal h-index 747 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 4 / 5 | 2024 — within 3 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 43 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 10.8 citations a year over 4 year(s) since 2024 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 11.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 3 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 43 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author William Taylor Kimberly: h-index 59 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Harvard University: institution h-index 3,235 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 5 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 39622805) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 55 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-54972-x
- PubMed: 39622805
- Original source →
- Free full text: Nature Communications →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Sorby-Adams, A. J., Guo, J., Laso, P., Kirsch, J. E., Zabinska, J., Garcia Guarniz, A. L., et al. (2024). Portable, low-field magnetic resonance imaging for evaluation of Alzheimer's disease. Nature communications. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54972-x
Vancouver
Sorby-Adams AJ, Guo J, Laso P, Kirsch JE, Zabinska J, Garcia Guarniz AL, et al. Portable, low-field magnetic resonance imaging for evaluation of Alzheimer's disease. Nature communications. 2024. doi:10.1038/s41467-024-54972-x. PMID: 39622805.
BibTeX
@article{sorbyadams2024-39622805,
author = {Sorby-Adams, A. J. and Guo, J. and Laso, P. and Kirsch, J. E. and Zabinska, J. and Garcia Guarniz, A. L. and Schaefer, P. W. and Payabvash, S. and others},
title = {{Portable, low-field magnetic resonance imaging for evaluation of Alzheimer's disease}},
journal = {Nature communications},
year = {2024},
doi = {10.1038/s41467-024-54972-x},
pmid = {39622805},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-024-54972-x}
}
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